Acupuncture, which involves treatment of a patient by inserting thin needles into his body at certain specific points, is one of the oldest forms of medical practice and has been used in the Orient for thousands of years. The theory generally accepted by the acupuncture practitioners is that the body has energy in the forms of "Chi" and "Blood", which extends through the body organs and manifests itself on the exterior as points on the skin. Each active point on the skin is called an "acupuncture point" and is very small--in the order of one square millimeter or less. Whenever there is imbalance in the energy forms, a person feels ill. By inserting needles at these acupuncture points and applying certain forms of energy, such as mechanical energy through manual maneuvering of the needles or thermal energy, the energy balance can be restored, and so is the patient's general well-being.
Over the centuries the traditional Oriental medicine has identified a large number of acupuncture points on the human body, which differ slightly in their physical properties. There are several variations in the identification and location of these acupuncture points. Many publications have compilations of the acupuncture points in charts and/or in written descriptions.
Successful acupuncture practitioners often have extensive experience and knowledge and have acquired their skills through years of rigorous training and practicing. A skilled acupuncturist may be able to find the acupuncture points by feeling with his fingers.
In recent years, interest in the methods used by the traditional Oriental medicine, especially acupuncture, has been growing rapidly among physicians as well as patients in the West. Some patients believe that the methods employed by the Oriental medicine are simpler and may in some cases lead to better therapeutic results, as compared to traditional Western methods of diagnosis and treatment. Some patients use them as complementary to the Western medical treatment. An increasing number of researchers have also studied the traditional Oriental medicine using modern techniques to gain better understanding. By electronically measuring certain physical properties, one can obtain the same information as might be obtained by a highly skilled acupuncturist using the traditional methods. Hence, electronic measurement of the acupuncture point activity can provide reproducible information with less extensive operator training in acupuncture.
It has been shown, in patent literature and elsewhere, that the traditional Oriental methods can be modified by using modern electronic devices and energy source providers to achieve the results faster without the loss of effectiveness. Combining the Oriental methods with modern sciences can also give more credence to these treatment methods and make them more acceptable to the Western medical community. Various practitioners have tried application of laser beam (light) and electrical stimulation, in addition to the more traditional pressure (massage) and heat, as an energy source to the selected acupuncture points in an effort to improve the ease and effectiveness of the treatment.
The procedure of applying thermal energy to an inserted acupuncture needle, known as moxibustion, has been practiced in the Orient for centuries and has recently been introduced to the Western countries in conjunction with the art and science of acupuncture. In part, this procedure involves heating the inserted needle by lighting a small amount of dried leaves of Artemisia Vulgaris, or wormwood, attached to the handle of the needle, or by holding the lighted end of a cigar-shaped roll of the dried leaves against the needle. This heating procedure is typically continued for 5 to 20 minutes. It is claimed by practitioners of this procedure that the needles heated in this fashion have an enhanced physiological effect. However, this method of heating is non-selective, uncontrolled, and the heat supplied may not reach exactly the desired point for the most effective therapeutic effect.
Acupuncture treatment using these prior art methods of heating inserted acupuncture needles sometimes produce burns caused by hot ashes falling on the patient. Uneven burning and poorly constituted burning materials cause uncontrolled variations of the applied heat, resulting in variations in treatment effectiveness. A temperature controlled energy provider to simulate said prior effective treatment means is in urgent need.
Application of heat, such as using a heating pad or whirlpool of hot or warm water, is widely practiced in the Western world to treat certain muscle- and joint-related bodily pains. However, there has not heretofore been a combination of acupuncture and such Western medical techniques as heating pads or physical therapy to benefit patients having various aches and pains such as those caused by arthritis, rheumatism, osteoarthritis, gout, migraine, gonarthritis, neuralgia, lumbago and similar muscle and joint problems. A temperature controlled energy provider to selectively target the receiving tissue or muscle sites is particularly important.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,938,526, entitled "Electrical Acupuncture Needle Heater", teaches a method of electrically heating an acupuncture needle that has been inserted into a subject. An electrical heating element thermally coupled to an acupuncture needle is used to heat the needle. The residual heat, even after the acupuncture therapy, may continuously burn the surrounding tissue. Said patent does not disclose the means for heating the acupuncture needle by a controllable radio frequency (RF) powered energy source, which is an on-off mode operation in that the heat is cut off immediately when the RF is turned off. Thus, RF heating of an acupuncture needle is less likely to cause unintentional tissue burns.
Of particular interest to the present invention are RF therapeutic protocols which have proven to be highly effective as used by electrophysiologists for tachycardia treatment, by neurosurgeons for the treatment of Parkinson's disease, and for neurosurgeons and anesthetists for other RF procedures such as Gasserian ganglionectomy for trigeminal neuralgia and percutaneous cervical cordotomy for intractable pains. Radio frequency ablation, which exposes a patient to minimal side effects and risks, is generally performed after locating the treatment sites. Radio frequency energy, when coupled with a temperature control mechanism, can supply precise energy to the needle contact site to obtain the desired temperature for the optimal effects.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,546,954, entitled "Method and Apparatus of Applying High-Frequency Wave Current to Reactive Electro-Permeable Point of Patient", teaches applying high-frequency wave current to an acupuncture needle and the second electrode. Said patent discloses the high-frequency wave current as being controlled within 2-10 mHz for a period of 1 to 10 seconds and within 0.5-7 W output. Said patent does not disclose the use of medium-frequency wave current, such as radio frequency current in the range of 100-1,000 kHz, preferably 300 to 600 kHz at an output power up to 50 W. Said patent does not disclose a temperature control mechanism or algorithm to precisely supply the energy as desired.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,408,617, entitled "Apparatus for Detecting the Acupuncture Points on a Patient and for Applying Electrical Stimulating Signals to the Detected Points", teaches a generator for delivering a sawtooth signal to the needle of a probe. However, said patent does not disclose treatment means using RF energy and/or having a temperature control means after finding an acupuncture point.
Imran in U.S. Pat. No. 5,281,218 teaches a needle electrode attached on a catheter for radio frequency ablation. Though a needle-like electrode is beneficial to ablate a tissue point for deep lesion, it is not disclosed that said needle is possible to make a point contact at the desired depth of acupuncture points, neither discloses a temperature control means for radio frequency therapy.
While an acupuncture procedure using an existing needle with high-frequency wave current has had promising results, the whole needle is exposed to the tissue contact area and the heat is dispersed over a wide range of tissue, resulting in inefficient treatment. Therefore there is a need for a new and improved acupuncture device system using the more controllable radio frequency current within the medium-frequency wave current range for generating precise heat to the desired depth of the acupuncture points. When RF energy is applied to a needle inserted in a patient, the RF energy is released to the tissue in direct contact with the needle. If part of the needle surface is insulated or coated with an insulating material, the RF energy can be released to the tissue only through the uninsulated conducting surface of the needle. By designing a needle with the tip as the conducting surface and the rest insulated, the energy releasing surface can be focused at the desired depth of acupuncture points.